Chained Maiden
by Ellethwen
Summary: She was never truly free. And now, the fate of 4 girls and all who have ever helped them hangs in the balance of her wrath.
1. Prelude

**Chained Maiden**

_She was never truly free. And now, the fate of 4 girls and all who have ever helped them hangs in the balance of her wrath._

**Disclaimer: **_Bishoujou Senshi Sailor Moon _belongs to Ms. Naoko Takeuchi. The original characters presented in this story belong to me, as does the actual writing. I make no money from this story, nor do I have any affiliation with Ms. Takeuchi or the people related to her in both a familial and business sense. This story may not be published in whole anywhere other then on , under the my pen name (Ellethwen); or where I have otherwise allowed publication. Small excerpts from the story are allowed as long as credit is given as well as a link back to this story.

**Author's Notes: **This is the first story of mine that will not be uploaded in a completed form. I may update slowly as, at the moment, my novel is taking up more of my time. Constructive criticism is absolute lurve. Feel free to review, but do not feel as though you're under any obligation to give me any. This story takes place approximately around the time S begins, but the dates have been bumped forward, so this story actually takes place in 2006. Sorry. But it shouldn't mess anything up, really. Lastly, there's a whole TON of mythological tie-ins and other little clues. See if you can find them all! And, just so you know. Every place mentioned is real, as are a lot of the things.

Nooowww...enjoy!

* * *

**Prelude**

_"If the moon smiled, she would resemble you.  
You leave the same impression  
Of something beautiful, but annihilating."  
_-Sylvia Plath, _The Rival_

The sun was setting in a blaze of fire, washing the quiet neighborhood a rich shade of gold. A smattering of people were out and about, walking home, playing, or sitting on their front porch, talking. The April breeze stirred the grass and made the air cool.

On the front lawn of one house, a 16-year-old girl with waist-length brown hair and liquid blue eyes was playing Fetch with a golden Labrador.

At the eastern end of the street was a woman with strawberry blonde hair and black eyes, dressed in a black skirt and white blouse. She was looking at a photo on a hand-held computer.

And at the western end, crowned by the sunlight, stood another girl, with orange-tinted hair tied into a half-ponytail and clear gray eyes. She was scanning the scene before her. Upon seeing the girl with her dog, the orange-haired girl's eyes narrowed.

"She's here," whispered two voices at the same time.


	2. Discovery

**Chapter 1: Discovery**

"_It's not only the most difficult thing to know one's self, but the most inconvenient."  
_-Josh Billings

Eumelia Ianthe yawned sleepily as she walked down her driveway. It was Monday, the start of another school week. And she wasn't looking forward to it.

Her car-a little red Grand Am-was parked on the curb. It looked like a high school student's car. Rust included, and free of charge at that. Sighing, Eumelia dropped her backpack and purse on the passenger's seat, then got in on the driver's side.

Checking her mirror, Eumelia spotted something glittering on her otherwise clean backseat. Twisting around, she picked it up.

It was a silver oval-shaped locket. Engraved on the front were two spiraled signs, mirroring each other. Opening it, she saw simply a small round purple stone mounted in the center of the right panel.

Eumelia had never seen it before. Then again, she gave people rides quite often. It most likely belonged to one of those people. Shrugging, she put it in her purse, then started the car.

Eumelia was a sophomore at North High School in Davenport, Iowa. She lived with her mother and grandparents in a little house. She played French Horn in the band and made fairly above average grades, but she was no genius. She was 16 years old and had very long brown hair, which she usually pulled partly back with a bobby pin.

The girl pulled into North High's west parking lot, then grabbed her things. She headed for a door by the teacher's parking lot that led straight into the music hallway. On the way, Eumelia passed a haughty-looking girl with orange-tinted hair tied into a half-ponytail. Eumelia paid her no attention, so she did not notice the glare that girl cast towards her.

When the heavy door closed behind her, Eumelia accidentally dropped her purse. With a clattering noise, everything fell out and skidded across the tiled floor.

"Shoot," Eumelia muttered. She knelt down and began to shove everything haphazardly back in the purse.

She had just grabbed the locket when someone screamed, shrilly. Eumelia paused, looking up. The first scream was followed by the sound of someone running. Then there were more screams.

Eumelia stood up and looked down the hallway, her heart speeding up. What was going on?

Her questions were answered when a group of students rounded the corner, yelling for help. They were closely followed by a towering blue snake-like monster with multiple heads.

Upon seeing the monster, Eumelia had an absolutely ridiculous thought that the _Odyssey _had, apparently, come to life.

Then it saw her.

Time seemed to inexplicably slow down.

The monster fluidly turned away from the students. Eumelia back up, shivering, into the door. The monster reared his head up, ready to strike. The locket slipped from Eumelia's fingers.

But before it could hit the ground, a bright purple light flared, enveloping the scene.

* * *

When Eumelia woke up, the first thought she had was that there must not be any ceiling in her room anymore. After all, she couldn't see the stars if there _was_ a ceiling. Except she was experiencing a rather strange floating sensation. And stars were surrounding her on all sides. It didn't feel like she was in her room, in bed, at all.

Eumelia rubbed her eyes vigorously. She pinched herself. But there was no change. As crazy as it seemed, it was apparently, ridiculously, real-

She was in space. Or a place that looked like it.

She was drifting comfortably in a sea of stars. Eumelia was so startled by this that she bolted upwards, rather then floating flat on her back. This served for more startles, and more after that, so that Eumelia was twisting everywhere. It would have been a comical sight, if she wasn't so darn worried. Especially when memories of what happened came back to her.

_Am I dead? But what was the purple light for?_

Eumelia contemplated this, as she drifted among the silent, watchful stars. She was so wrapped up in her thoughts that she didn't notice another figure floating towards her, until they spoke. "Eumelia."

At this, the 16 year old looked up, startled once again. "Who are you? Where am I?" she demanded immediately among seeing the other person.

The aforementioned was a woman with shoulder-length, straight strawberry blonde hair. Her eyes were black-which seemed a strange combination, but Eumelia was beginning to stop questioning things like that. This was all strange. The woman wore a long black skirt and a white blouse.

"You are in the world between death and life, in space as it was in the ancient past. I am the Guide--but you may call me Beatrice."

"Wait, what? The world between death and life? So I'm in limbo? Why the heck is it in space? In the ancient past? Am I dead? And let me guess, you're the Guide to the afterlife because I accidentally went the wrong way. Figures."

And, to her surprise, Beatrice chuckled. "Oh, no. You're not dead. And I'm no Guide to the afterlife. And you didn't take the wrong path on accident. You're not in limbo-well, not like you're thinking-and it's in space in the ancient past only for you. Because this is for something _very important_." Beatrice spoke the last two words with an emphasis that made Eumelia cringe.

"How important?" Eumelia asked, her voice getting strangely small._ Why, oh why, does this stuff have to happen to me?_

Beatrice took a deep breath. "Eumelia, do you know about the Sailor Senshi in Japan?"

"Yes." Eumelia adored the Sailor Senshi. She had always, secretly, wished she could meet those strong, beautiful girls that protected the world. Sailor Senshi, Soldiers, or Guardians-no matter the name pinned to them.

"Well, there's more Senshi then those 5 in the world. In fact, you are one of them."

Eumelia blinked. "Wait. So you're saying there's more Sailor Soldiers in the world then just Moon, Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus..." she ticked them off on her fingers. "And you're saying that I'm a Soldier, too?" Beatrice nodded. Eumelia stared, blankly. Then, "...that's impossible. You've confused me with someone else."

"I swear to the high heavens-which, unfortunately, means I'm swearing to the place we're in-that's I'm not confused. You are Sailor Lyra."

Eumelia snorted. "Lyra? That's a constellation. I thought they were all based around planets and moons. And maybe single stars. Not constellations."

"Well, you're wrong there. Partly. Yes, the majority of Sailor Senshi draw their power-and their names-from those things. After all, there are a lot more of those then constellations."

"Wait. But aren't all stars in constellations?"

Beatrice pinched her nose. "Listen, I didn't make the rules. Ask the person who did how that works. Anyways, you're Sailor Lyra, and you draw your power from the constellation of the same name."

Eumelia nodded, but there was a sinking feeling in her chest. "But Beatrice...if I'm a Senshi, then that means I have to fight. And, I realize now that I don't really want to. I like my life as it is-nice and simple and comfortable. Besides, I don't like to fight. And what if I die? I want to live my life to its normal span. Not die fighting a monster."

Beatrice was silent for a while, then spoke. "I understand your fears. However...it is imperative that you overcome those. Because the universe needs you-not just the world." She held her left hand up. A few sparkles gathered in the air above it, then a silver locket appeared, dropping into the woman's hand. She floated it over to Eumelia, who caught it gently. It was the same locket she'd seen this morning.

"I put this locket in your car, hoping you'd find out on your own. Unfortunately, you did not recognize it. And our enemy discovered you and attacked you, when you were still vulnerable and could not protect yourself. Luckily, the locket activated itself, and sent you here, where you could be safe-and I could tell you myself."

Eumelia studied the locket. She was still having a very, very hard time believing Beatrice. But it did feel warm in her palm, and it was almost like the locket was trying to tell her something. Averting her attention from the necklace, she looked up.

"Enemy? What do you know about them? And what's this locket for?"

Beatrice sighed. "Unfortunately, I know nothing about the enemy-only that they're focused on this area, and that they would seek you out. I don't know who they are, or what their motive is. And the locket is your henshin locket-that is, transformation locket. If you use it, you can transform into Sailor Lyra. To use it, you say 'Lyra Constellation Power, Make-up!'."

Eumelia studied it closely. It seemed strange that such a seemingly innocent object could give her the power the Sailor Soldiers in Japan had. However, she decided that now would be the time to chose whether she would fight-or not.

She was quiet for a very long time, thinking things over. Beatrice, understanding what was happening, stayed silent. But after nearly 20 minutes, Eumelia looked up, and slipped the locket over her head. It sparkled around her neck.

"I'll fight," she said, her voice strong and clear. "I'd hate myself forever for not doing this. It's just-do I have to fight alone? Or are there others like me?"

Beatrice smiled. "Yes, there are other Senshi who are in your area, and they are there because it is destiny. You have to find them. And-I'm very glad you decided to fight, Lyra. Now, I have to send you back-so you can fight for the first time. But, before you go, I want to give this to you." Beatrice summoned something else and once again floated it over to Eumelia.

It was a round purple makeup compact. The same symbol Eumelia had seen on the locket was painted in an aquamarine color on the top. Only now did it occur to the girl that the symbol looked like a harp-which was what the constellation Lyra represented. Opening it, Eumelia saw a mirror, and, predictably, some pale powder with a white sponge pad to apply it. Confused, she looked up at Beatrice.

"Um, I like makeup as much as the next girl, but why?" Beatrice laughed at that.

"That's a compact you can use to communicate with me. If you just say my name into the mirror, I'll appear in it and can talk to you. It's disguised like that so no one fiddles around with it-although you are the only one who can use it properly. I thought it would be better then, say, a phone, because people steal those more then makeup."

Eumelia nodded slowly, then slipped the compact into her pocket. "So...I've got to go back now and fight that monster, right?"

Beatrice nodded, gravely. "Sailor Lyra-Eumelia Ianthe-I wish you luck." She raised a hand, and a brilliant gray light flashed as Eumelia braced herself for the fight that was coming. She only hoped that she had made the right choice.

* * *

When the light cleared, Eumelia was once again standing against the door. Time, apparently, had stopped. She was the only person moving. The weight of the locket rested against her chest, and Eumelia knew that it was time to fight. She threw up a hand, while crying, "Lyra Constellation Power, Make-up!"

A purple light flared. When it was gone, Eumelia was changed into a Sailor Soldier-

Sailor Lyra.

She wore a short dress with a white bodice and a purple skirt decorated with 4 aquamarine pins. Bows of the same color adorned the back of the skirt and the front. The white sleeves completely covered her arms and hands. On Lyra's feet were purple heels, and a silver tiara accented with a purple star rested on her forehead. A choker was tied around her neck, and she also wore purple earrings.

Lyra assumed that she had transformed just in time, because very shortly after transforming, the monster-frozen the way it had been before the locket activated-began to move.

As much as Lyra had tried to brace herself for the fight, all of her courage evaporated.

There are some things humans just aren't meant to deal with.

So, as soon as the thing started to move towards her, Lyra shot down the hallway, heels clicking madly. Students and staff, who had no idea what had just happened, stared at her as she ran past. Who was this girl in the funny outfit, and why was she running as if all hell had just broken loose?

Lyra only stopped running when she reached the main hallway that led to the east and west sides of the building. She realized her mistake then, as the hallway was busy with people. News about the monster hadn't yet spread this far-but it would soon. Then all hell _would_ break loose.

Clenching her fists, Lyra spun around-and saw the snake round the corner.

She spun back around. The hallway had to be cleared.

"Move!" She shouted, moving her arms in a sweeping motion. No one listened. Meanwhile, the snake continued to maneuver itself through the small corner.

Lyra decided to be louder. "Move! Clear the hallway!" she shouted again, louder this time. Everyone looked at her, then went back to talking. They weren't going to listen. After all, to them, she was just a girl in a funny outfit.

Lyra felt like screaming in frustration. Which she did. "Move! Get out of the hallway!" she shrieked, stamping her foot.

Still, they didn't move. Until someone who had been coming around the corner on the opposite end of the hallway behind Lyra saw the monster.

"Monster! There's a monster!" he screamed, running back around the corner.

That got everyone's attention. So did the snake's head finally poking into the main hallway.

Pandemonium. But at least they moved as far away as possible from Lyra and the snake. Meanwhile, teachers poked their heads out of classrooms to see what was happening, then frantically called the main office. Quite soon, an announcement came over the intercom, telling everyone to go into their classrooms and remain calm.

One teacher shouted for Lyra to go in his room, but she refused. "I'm going to fight this thing, you stay inside your room!" She shouted at him. He froze for an instant, but then, reluctantly, closed the door.

Turning around, Lyra faced her fears. She was still extremely scared, but that wasn't going to get her anywhere.

Of course, there was the issue of how to fight. Eumelia had neglected to ask-and Beatrice had neglected to tell-exactly what powers she had. And how to use them. But maybe if she thought hard enough, Lyra could figure that out.

But that was extremely hard to do when a snake-monster intent on eating you was about two feet away.

But as soon as Lyra was about to turn and run, an idea flashed brilliantly and wonderfully into her mind, and she latched onto it.

Feeling rather ridiculous, Lyra backed away quickly, raising her hands.

"Lyra Foaming Wave!" She cried the words that had popped into her mind. And it worked.

A light flared-_I'm getting tired of lights,_ Lyra though bemusedly-and a wave of water appeared out of nowhere. It rushed towards the monster and engulfed it. And when the water cleared, the snake was gone-leaving nothing but puddles of water and posters on the wall soggy and torn.

Lyra, meanwhile, blinked. That attack didn't feel like she had made it up. It felt-comfortable to use, almost natural, as if she'd used it many times before. _Huh._

However, people who had clustered around the small windows in the classroom doors immediately wanted to get out and ask her what she'd done. The security and police team that had been heading to deal with the monster froze, then started running towards her.

Lyra turned red. She didn't want to deal with this, much less reveal her secret. Besides, she liked the idea of being secretive. Just like the Soldiers in Japan.

So she turned and ran out the door, across the parking lot, behind the YMCA building, and scurried across the open grass until she reached the woods nearby, where she could lose them. Sure enough, nobody could find her.

Then, sitting down to rest, Lyra held up her hand. With little more then a thought, she was able to summon her communication locket. It materialized out of the air to land in her palm. She opened and spoke excitedly into the mirror. "Beatrice!"

The woman's face appeared in the mirror. "Congratulations, Lyra. Now, what we have to do is find the rest of the Sailors-and defeat the enemy." And with that said, her face disappeared, and she did not appear again.

Feeling confused, but still exhilarated, Lyra sent the locket back to-well, wherever it went when she was transformed and not using it. Then she thought for a minute and solved the issue of de-transforming. She had to touch the jewel on her tiara and will herself to de-transform. But again, that felt very familiar to do.

Eumelia hurried out of the trees and back to the school. Seeing a police team and reporters milling around the door she'd come out of, the girl took the driveway in the back to make it look like she'd come in the east door, and hadn't been near the west end at all. That way, she hoped people wouldn't recognize her.

When she came in, Eumelia was greeted by her best friend, Aella, who told her that school was canceled for the rest of the day. Eumelia was extremely grateful for this, as she'd decided that she'd had enough excitement-and her exhaustion had caught up with her.

So the new Sailor Senshi snuck over to the music hallway, grabbed her things, then headed out to her car and quickly got in and drove away, feeling absolutely amazed at the events of the day.


	3. Flame

**Chapter 2: Flame**

"_Fire is never a gentle master."  
_-Proverb

"Mom, I don't _want_ to go to Bettendorf."

"Eumelia, I've told you a million times already. I'm not sending you to attend Bettendorf. I'm looking for a job there."

"I know that. You would never make me attend Bettendorf's high school. I just don't want to even be in the building. Besides, you already have a good job at Harrison."

"You've been there before, for band contests. And I'm sick to death of being an art teacher at Harrison. You can only take so much of elementary school kids."

"Oh. But anyways, going there for band contests are different. Because I was there to beat them in contests. I don't want to be at Bettendorf unless I'm there to beat them."

"Eumelia..."

Eumelia and her mother were driving to the neighboring city of Bettendorf. Specifically, to Bettendorf High School. The whole way there, Eumelia had been curled up in the backseat of the family car, complaining.

"I don't even know why I have to go here with you." She hadn't given up yet, as they turned onto Tanglefoot Lane.

Her mother sighed. "Because you wanted to go to West Music afterwards, and it's easier to just drag you along with me."

Eumelia didn't contest that point, although she still grumbled silently to herself. Then the car rolled to a stop in front of the big, fancy building of Bettendorf High School. Sighing, Eumelia glared at it. It was easy to be intimidated by the wealthiness of the school-and the city as a whole-when you attended a school as desperately underfunded as North.

However, it would be bad to act like this in the school. Eumelia grabbed her North High bag and marched after her mother, head held high.

While the aforementioned parent waited in the chairs outside the office, Eumelia wandered off down one of the long carpeted hallways, wrinkling her noise at the sheer _expensiveness_ of the building. Unfortunately, the fact that she wasn't well acquainted with the building soon led her to be lost in the maze of hallways and rooms. What a lovely way to spend a Saturday.

Eumelia headed up a flight of stairs to the second floor in pursuit of a map of the building. She wasn't paying attention where she was going, so it was with some shock when she collided directly with a person who was trying to go down the stairs. Eumelia wobbled precariously for a bit on the edge of the steps, then fell on her behind on the top of the stairs.

"Watch where you're going!" a voice said crisply. Eumelia frowned as she looked up at the person who'd gotten in her way. It was a girl, probably about the same age as her. The girl had red hair tied up into a neat bun and glittering brown eyes. She was tall and thin, and wore a rather professional-looking outfit.

The girl frowned down at her as well. "A North student," she said, matter-of-factly.

"A Bettendorf student," Eumelia pointed out as well.

The other ignored her. "Why are you here?" She looked annoyed.

Eumelia jumped to her feet, only to find that she was a whole head shorter then her current enemy. Turning slightly red, she looked up. "My mom's looking for a job here as an art teacher."

The redhead said, rather snobbishly, "I doubt she'll get a job. I heard that a university teacher applied for that position, too." She dusted her skirt off. "Now if you'll excuse me..." The student walked primly past Eumelia and down the stairs. Eumelia watched her go, glaring.

"Stuck-up snob," she muttered under her breath, continuing on her search for a map.

Eumelia hadn't told her mom that she was Sailor Lyra since she'd found out about her second self two weeks ago. In fact, she hadn't told anyone. _Probably better that way,_ she thought to herself as she studied a bulletin board covered with announcements for things such as club gatherings and softball games. _She worries so much about everything._

No map had yet been found, and Eumelia felt hopelessly lost. "The building can't possibly be this big!" she exclaimed, grinding her teeth. There was another flight of stairs at the end of the hallway she was in. Eumelia went down those, hoping that she would find something familiar to go by.

She did find something familiar. But it wasn't very helpful. Actually, it only served to annoy her more.

"You! What are you wandering around for?"

Eumelia felt vaguely like ripping her hair out. She turned very red as she stared at the girl she'd run into earlier, who had apparently been headed out the door. "I'm looking for the office," she muttered.

The other snickered. "Lost? No wonder, North's really small. The office is at the end of this hallway."

Eumelia glared at her again, wishing that looks could actually kill. Then she flipped her hair over her shoulder. "I knew that," Eumelia told the girl, then strode purposefully down the hallway.

"You're going the wrong way!"

Turning even more red, Eumelia spun on her heel and headed the other way.

* * *

Her mother had said the interview went very well. Eumelia did not tell her that she'd wandered off while the interview had been going on. The events had been embarrassing enough.

Now they were at the Bettendorf branch of West Music. Eumelia was flipping through the books of music for the French Horn, while her mom poked around the bin of violin music. It'd been a long time since the older woman had played violin, but she was contemplating starting again.

Eumelia pulled 2 different books of music out of the bin and headed over to the counter. "I'll buy these. Also, can I ask you a question?" she asked, looking up. Then froze.

"You! Why do you keep following me around?"

The red-haired girl from earlier stared at Eumelia uninterestedly, head propped on her hand. "I think that's my line," she said flatly. "And you've already asked me a question, but go ahead and ask me another one."

Eumelia bit her lip. "I was wondering if you carried a book of music from Star Wars for the French Horn."

The girl rolled her eyes. "Why Star Wars? Hold on, let me check." She got up from the counter and tapped a few things on the computer next to her. Eumelia noticed that her name tag read _Theia Kokinos_.

"So, Theia...why do I keep running into you?" she asked, conversationally. _Maybe it's because I'm just unlucky and I have to deal with snobs like you,_ was what Eumelia thought to herself.

"I work here. And I was at the school earlier because I'm on the dance team at Bettendorf." Theia turned back towards Eumelia. "We don't have that music in stock, by the way. Do you want me to order it for you?"

Eumelia thought for a minute. Then, "No. And why do you work here, anyways? You don't look much like a musician."

Theia glared at her. "No, I'm not a musician. I work here because I needed a job. And why do you care so much about my life, anyways? What, are you going to ask me how much I make every hour next?" She grabbed Eumelia's books and a bar code scanner.

Eumelia was dying to say _I'm asking because I hate you and want to annoy you_, but she remained silent. Behind the sophomore, Eumelia's mom approached the counter holding a slim violin workbook. "Did they have the music you wanted, Eumelia?"

Shaking her head, Eumelia said "I'll wait to get it later." Behind her, a plastic bag rustled as Theia shoved the music in a bag.

"That'll be 25.16," she said, pushing the bag towards Eumelia, who winced as she took out her wallet.

"There goes the last of this week's paycheck," she commented mournfully, pulling out a few bills. She handed them to Theia, who dropped the bills in the till and counted out the change while the receipt printed. She dropped both the money and the slip of paper in Eumelia's hand.

When her mom dropped her purchase on the counter, Eumelia said "I've got to go the bathroom really quick. Do you have one here I can use?"

Theia pointed to the back of the store. Eumelia handed the bag to her mom and headed that direction. She had just closed the door behind her when she heard a beeping coming from her purse. Assuming that it was her cellphone, she dug around looking for it, when she saw that the symbol on top of her contact compact was flashing. That was where the beeping was coming from.

Wondering if it was possible for magical makeup compacts to malfunction, Eumelia pulled it out and opened it. She jumped a little bit when Beatrice's face appeared on the screen.

"Eumelia, you're at West Music in Bettendorf, right?"

Eumelia frowned again for what felt like the hundredth time that day. "Yes. And I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't spy on me."

Beatrice rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Anyways, I think there's an enemy located there..."

She was cut off by a loud crashing sound and a shriek from outside.

Eumelia winced. "Yeah, I'll go fight it. And I would appreciate it if you told me about these things earlier." She snapped the compact closed and shoved it in her purse before Beatrice could say anything in reply.

She took a deep breath, then cried out "Lyra Constellation Power, Make-up!"

Once she was transformed, Eumelia opened up the door. Only to see that her way was blocked by a tipped-over rack that had once been used for displaying woodwind instruments. The instruments themselves were around it. Lyra picked her way carefully over it and scanned the store for the enemy, as well as for her mother and Theia. As much as Lyra disliked the redhead, she didn't really want anyone's death on her conscience.

She didn't see anybody. Walking over to the counter, she peered over it. Sure enough, Theia and her mother were cowering behind it. Neither of them seemed to recognize her, although Theia scrutinized her closely before asking "Who the hell are you?"

Lyra snorted. "Sailor Lyra. What happened?" Theia, for an answer, simply pointed.

Following her point, Lyra spotted the offending monster.

It was a phoenix. Lyra recognized it from the various paintings and descriptions she'd heard. She stared at it in awe, forgetting that it was her enemy. It was beautiful. Red feathers that shone like fire, glittering eyes...

Then it swooped down at her, and Lyra remembered that although it was beautiful, it was still intent on attacking her-and, apparently, Theia, who shrieked and ducked as it skimmed her head.

Figuring that it would use fire somehow, Lyra deemed it necessary to attack as soon as possible. At least a phoenix wasn't as scary as the snake she'd encountered, although she would regret having to kill something so beautiful.

Lyra raised her hand and was just ready to call out the attack when something heavy, large, and brown came soaring through the air. Stumbling back, Lyra's mouth dropped open when she realized that Theia had gotten out from behind the counter, and had just lobbed a cello at the phoenix.

"What the _hell_ was that for? You almost hit me!" Lyra swore, fuming. Theia only rolled her eyes in response, to which Lyra sighed again.

"It works," the other girl said, seizing upon a violin.

"But you missed!" Lyra cried, ducking as the violin soared over head head-and hit the phoenix squarely in the chest.

"That did," Theia replied, shrugging. "Now if you're going to do something, I suggest getting it over with."

Grumbling, Lyra again raised her hand. "Lyra Foaming Wave!" she cried, and once again,t he wave of water was summoned. It washed towards the phoenix, who was currently flapping around looking irritated on the other side of the building.

At first, Lyra assumed that would be the end of it. She used water, and phoenixes were fire...

Except it didn't work out that way. The wave disappeared as a wall of crimson fire wrapped around the water.

"ARGH! Why didn't it WORK?!" Lyra cried in frustration. Behind her, Theia snickered, even though more then half the store had now been methodically destroyed.

The phoenix swooped down towards the two girls, who ran. Theia dodged around a corner into a private lesson room, while Lyra ran down a short flight of stairs onto a lower level, where pianos were kept.

Their pursuer paused for a bit, as if he was debating which way to go. Then he took off after Theia.

Lyra was just turning back around when she got the distinct idea that Beatrice was trying to contact her. She summoned the compact. Sure enough, the symbol on top was flashing. Lyra flipped it open, and Beatrice's face came into view.

"What do you want, oh current abomination on mine eyes?"

"I want to eat your head," Beatrice said, deadpan.

"We'll discuss that later. Figure out spices and stuff. But what else did you want?"

"Lyra, Theia is a Sailor Senshi like you." Beatrice held up a locket similar to Lyra's, except the symbol was different-a circle with a four-petaled shape inside, and wavy lines between each of the petals.

Lyra groaned. "Why? Why does my luck have to be like this?"

Beatrice frowned. "Well, it doesn't matter. I'm giving this locket to you. Give it to Theia, tell her she's a Senshi-sum it up. Tell Theia that she's Sailor Auriga. I'm sure she'll accept right away." The locket disappeared in a shower of stars, then reappeared in front of Lyra, who caught it. She opened it, and saw a red stone inside.

Sighing, Lyra realized that this was, indeed, just her luck. She said goodbye to Beatrice glumly, then hurried over to the practice room Theia had run into.

The redhead was crouching under a piano bench, a plastic metronome in her hand. The phoenix was too big, really, to fit in the room, and this gave Theia and advantage. Lyra ran over towards her apparent companion.

"Theia! You're a Sailor Senshi, like me!"

Theia only blinked at Lyra. Then it seemed to register in her mind.

"Really? Like you, I suppose? That's great! Now how do I transform?"

"With this locket," Lyra responded, shoving it into Theia's hand. "I'm assuming you'd say 'Auriga Constellation Power, Make-up!', but our dear old Guide-who will talk to you later-didn't tell me anything."

"Ah, whatever, I'll figure it out." Theia slipped the locket over head and crawled out from under the bench.

"Auriga Constellation Power, Make-up!" she shouted. A red light enveloped her, and when it cleared, Lyra realized with a tinge of reservation that Beatrice was right.

Sailor Auriga's outfit was just like Lyra's, except it was in red and cream. She wore pointed knee-high boots accented with a flame at the top and earrings consisting of a round bead with a diamond bead dangling from that. The star-shaped red jewel on Auriga's tiara sparkled like flame.

"Oh, wow," she commented briefly, then, noticing that the phoenix was still a problem, sprang into action.

Lyra couldn't help but feel jealous, because Auriga apparently knew from the get-go what to do.

"Auriga Flame Ray!" she shouted, pointing her finger at the phoenix. When a ray of flame shot towards the phoenix, Lyra was almost certain that it wouldn't work-but it did. The fire gathered around the phoenix, and without a sound, the phoenix was destroyed. When the flames disappeared, all it left were scorched walls.

_Fight fire with fire. So that's how it goes,_ Lyra grumbled to herself. Peeking around at the destruction, Lyra suddenly became aware that it was a really good thing that no one else had been present in the store.

She looked at Theia. "Well, welcome to the team, Theia."

Auriga grinned. "I guess I have to be nicer to you now, don't I, Eumelia? I knew from the get-go who you were."

And at that, Lyra felt vaguely like screaming.


	4. Friend

**Chapter 3: Friend**

_"To hear an oriole sing  
May be a common thing,  
Or only a divine."  
_-Emily Dickinson

May was drawing to an end. The days were warm and bright, and most wanted to simply relax in the nice weather.

Unfortunately, for the high school population of the Quad-Cities, the end of May meant fourth term finals, and they were all snowed under with homework. Eumelia, her best friend Aella, and Theia were no exception. Eumelia and Theia did not see each other many more times, but they behaved a bit more civil towards each other.

However, Eumelia had never been one who enjoyed studying, and she felt like she was going crazy. So one Saturday found her and Aella at the mall, unwinding from all the recent stress.

"So, Eumelia, what's up with your mom? She seemed really nervous and jumpy," Aella commented, as they sat on a bench with small containers of Dippin' Dots ice cream. Eumelia immediately winced at the question.

The reason Eumelia's mom was so jumpy was because she was afraid to let her daughter go anywhere alone. After the incident at West Music, and after comparing that to the event at school, Ms. Ianthe firmly believed that there were monsters lurking around every corner. Eumelia was almost on the verge of admitting to her mother that she was Sailor Lyra.

But Aella was expecting an answer, so Eumelia responded with "She thinks a monster's going to get me."

"Oh. Well, you know, two monsters have shown up. Maybe your mom's not being so dumb," Aella said, brushing aside a wisp of her wavy, light blonde, shoulder-length hair. Swallowing a scoop of her vanilla ice cream, she pointed to JC Penny. "Want to go there? They're having the usual Saturday sale."

"Not particularly." Eumelia looked at the few bags she had. "All they have there are clothes, really, and I've got enough of those."

"Mmm, okay. Hey, what do you think of that Sailor Lyra girl? You saw her at West Music, right?"

Eumelia stiffened. Then stuttered, "We...Well...I think she's...cool."

"Me too," Aella sighed, not noticing her friend's agitation. "I'd love to be just like her." And at that, Eumelia had to smile slightly to herself.

* * *

After finishing their ice cream, the pair decided to head to Barnes & Noble. Eumelia headed to the Music section, and Aella went to the politics section.

Aella was studying the cover of a book when a girl with orange-tinted hair tied into a half ponytail came around the corner of the shelves. The blonde paid her no mind, thusly missing the poisonous look on the girl's face as she walked past.

Eumelia was scanning the titles of CDs when she felt a breeze stir her hair. She paused and looked around, but nothing that could have caused it could be seen.

Just as Eumelia was turning around again, there was a stronger gust of wind, and then another, which flapped up the hanging papers on the shelves.

Something was distinctly wrong.

Wanting to ask Beatrice about it, Eumelia headed towards a tucked-away corner. Reaching into her purse for her compact, Eumelia was confronted with the apparent source of the wind.

A tall, slender, pale woman was standing there. Long white hair whipped around her. Cupped in the woman's hand was a glowing white stone. The wind clearly came from this point, and it seemed to be getting stronger every second.

The woman's eyes were closed, but as Eumelia drew near, they opened, and looked straight at her.

Looking into those piercing white eyes, Eumelia was caught off guard. And then, the woman took her chance.

The wind died. The stone glowed with a glaring white light, which then narrowed and focused on Eumelia, who gasped as the beam wrapped itself around her throat.

Instinctively, Eumelia grabbed at the light, which she found was strangely soft and solid. Prying it away from her throat, she quickly ducked out of the loop, then bolted away.

In her flight, Eumelia ran straight into Aella, who had just been going to find her. The blonde looked a little shocked at her friend was behaving. "Eumelia! What's going on?" she asked.

"No time to explain!" Eumelia answered. Noticing that the woman was approaching, she grabbed Aella's wrist. "Come with me!"

Pulling Aella (who was protesting loudly) after her, Eumelia ran into the food court, then down a short hallway to the bathrooms. Closing the door behind her, Eumelia sighed. Then she turned to Aella, looking resigned. "I really need you to keep this a secret."

At Aella's nod, Eumelia continued. "Please don't freak out..." Aella nodded again.

Apprehensively, Eumelia threw her hand up, and transformed.

When the light was gone, Aella looked as if she had just been told the world was going to implode in five seconds.

But there wasn't much time left for wondering, because the bathroom door banged open. The woman stood there, her light immediately expanded into the same rope, trying to knot itself around Lyra's throat.

But she was ready. Jumping back, the senshi quickly retaliated. "Lyra Foaming Wave!"

The light rapidly formed a shield. Then the wave of water crashed against it, and was reflected back towards Lyra, who shrieked in pain and shock as the ware hit her, knocking her to the ground.

Aella, too, was thrown to the floor. Gasping for breath, she pushed herself up, and saw, to her horror, Eumelia was being strangled by the rope.

Lyra scratched at it, and managed to slip one hand under it. Pushing it away, and idea flashed into her mind.

Summoning her compact, she threw it at Aella, who, unfortunately, missed it, and it skittered across the tile. "Open it!" she choked out. "Say 'Theia' into the mirror and tell her I need help!"

Aella grabbed the compact. She fumbled with it, then managed to open it. Glancing at Eumelia, who was trying to kick her adversary, she cried "Theia!" hoarsely.

Breathless seconds passed, then the face of a girl appeared in the mirror. She frowned. "Who are you?"

"Never mind that! Sailor Lyra needs help! We're at Northpark Mall!"

Theia paused for a minute, then said, "Okay, I'm coming."

When the redhead's face disappeared, Aella snapped the compact shut, then looked again at the battle. Eumelia had managed to escape again, and was now simply trying to avoid the enemy.

Aella narrowed her eyes as she stared at the stone. It was the source of the light, that was plain as day. So if the stoned was destroyed, then there would be no rope to hurt her friend.

She picked herself up off the floor. "Hey, you!" Aella shouted, and hurled her purse at the lady's head. It hit her in the ear.

There was a sort of strange silence, in which Aella and Eumelia (who was standing on top of a toilet in one of the stalls) both winced inwardly.

Then the woman turned, slowly, deliberately, towards Aella. She ran one finger over her stone, and then...Aella braced herself...

Nothing happened.

Well, other then a voice yelling, "Auriga Flame Ray!"

A stream of fire came from the door entrance. It hit the woman in the leg, and left a smoldering hole in the yellow robe she had been wearing.

There was a cheering of "Auriga! Auriga! Yay!" from inside one of the stalls. Aella blinked, and saw the red-headed girl she'd talked to standing in the doorway, rolling her eyes. She wore an outfit similar to Lyra's.

_Ah. Sailor Auriga...she showed up at West Music too, didn't she?_ Aella thought, but then there was a sparkled in the air directly in front of her eyes.

A sliver locket appeared, suspended in the air. Sailor Auriga's eyes grew big, and so did Eumelia. Etched onto the top of it was a symbol of two diamonds inside of each other, with a central dot.

"She's...a senshi, too?" Eumelia said, sounding shocked. But then she saw the woman was standing up from her injury. Kicking her from behind, she shouted, "Aella! Take the locket! You're like us!"

Aella blinked. "But..."

And then she remembered, like a distant call, herself speaking, such a short while ago. _I wish I could be just like her..._

_Be careful what you wish for,_ Aella thought wryly, and grabbed the locket. The words formed in her wind, and she stood up, and yelled, "Cygnus Constellation Power, Make-up!"

There was a pale blue light, and a feeling like a breeze. And then it was gone, and Aella stood there, in an outfit of pale blue and yellow. Birds were on the tops of her heeled shoes.

She looked startled. "Oh...I would be Sailor Cygnus, wouldn't I? Well this is bizarre."

Cygnus closed her eyes, thinking hard on what her attack would be.

"Cygnus Cloud Chain!"

Lyra winced, because her attack was just like the woman's...a chain of light, only this was more like clouds.

Cygnus used it pin the lady's arms to her side. "Quick, Lyra!"

Sailor Lyra nodded. "Lyra Foaming Wave!"

This time, the water wasn't reflected. It washed over the lady, and there was a flash. Then...the lady was gone. All that was left was the stone, lying on the ground. Sailor Cygnus bent to pick it up, but then it disappeared in a burst of smoke, and far away, the three thought they could hear a scream of frustration...


	5. Wilds

**Chapter 4: Wilds**

"_Thou strange piece of wild nature!"  
_-Colley Cibber

It was mid-June. The senshi had all passed their final exams, so next year, they were on the fast track to being juniors in high school. They also became closer friends. Aella and Theia were good friends once they learned more about each other, and the same happened with Eumelia and Theia, although they were still prone to disagreements.

One thing that bothered all of them was the definite lack of monsters. Four weeks had passed, and it seemed strange that their enemy would not attack. Had they defeated it? But there was still that eerie wail that seemed to signify that, although their enemy was weakened, they were still alive.

The middle of June, of course, always brought a number of festivals to the Quad-Cities area, one of them being the Bijou Arts Fair. Eumelia really wanted to go, and she begged Theia and Aella to come with, saying they should do something really fun together. Aella agreed quickly, but it took some persuading to get Theia to come. But finally, she agreed, and it was with relish that Eumelia led the two down the streets of downtown Davenport.

The light of the warm June sun was caught in the various handmade baubles on sale, which then glittered everywhere. There was also music, and the smell of food, and people talking and laughing, while performers joked with their audiences and announced the names of their songs.

It was the smell of frying food that was appealing to Eumelia's stomach at that particular moment. Checking her watch, she could see that it read _12:43_.

"Hey, let's go get some food," she suggested to her companions.

"Good, I was just going to suggest that myself," Theia responded. Aella nodded, and they wandered off in search of a particularly appealing scent: that of frying hamburgers and French fries.

The source of the smell came from a small booth at the end of Pershing Street. A sign on the front read _West High School Environmental Club: All proceeds go towards a garden at Credit Island Park. _Several students in street clothes were behind the counter, either cooking the hamburgers, dumping fries in hot oil, serving the food, or taking money and orders.

"What would you like, girls?" said one of them, a tall, sturdy girl or the same age. She had loosely curled black hair tied into a ponytail with a big green bow and bright green eyes.

"Um, I'd like a hamburger with onions and lettuce, and some fries," Eumelia said.

"The same as her," Theia and Aella responded in unison. Then, for some reason, they cracked up.

The girl behind the table looked a little nervous at their antics. "Um, okay." she told them the cost, then turned around and gave the orders to the young guy working the fryer.

No one else was ordering at the moment, which seemed a bit strange, considering the time. "Why isn't anyone else ordering?" she asked.

"Oh, we're in a bad spot," the green-eyed girl commented airily. "Nobody really walks out this far."

Just then, there was an enormous cloud of smoke behind her, and an awful lot of swearing.

"Oh my god, Marcos. Did the fryer just break?" the girl said, spinning around.

Marcos waved his arms, trying to clear the smoke. "I'm not sure. I think it needs more propane."

"Well, if that's true, then go get a can out of the van!"

The guy obeyed, hurrying off, leaving his fellow cookers grumbling angrily. The girl turned back around. "I'm sorry about that. You can wait, or we can give you your money back so you can order somewhere else."

"I think we're fine with waiting," Eumelia hear herself say. For some reason, she was intrigued by this girl.

"Oh, okay. Hey, I really like your hair. It's so long and pretty."

"Thanks!" Eumelia responded, happy. "My mom says it's way too long."

"Well, ignore her. It's really nice."

Aella then piped up from somewhere behind them. "I'm kind of wondering why the environmental club is selling burgers. Wouldn't you discourage meat-eating?"

The girl's face fell. "Oh, yeah. Well, not all of us are vegetarians. I am, but this is going to a good cause. I suppose that we do need some meat-eaters, or else we'd have a lot of issues with animal over-population and even more carbon dioxide issues. I just refuse to cook the burgers." She cleared her throat. "My name's Astraia, by the way. Astraia Acanthe."

She held out her hand, and Eumelia shook it. "Pleased to meet you! I'm Eumelia Ianthe."

"I'm Theia Kokinos," Theia answered. She pointed to the third of their group, "and this is Aella Leda."

"Pleased to meet you. It's nice to see that there's other people with Greek names running around this area. I'm told a lot that my name is weird, because it's not English."

"Astraia! I've got some more propane!"

Marcos had returned, hefting a large white propane can. "Good," Astraia called. "Well, hurry and hook it up. We've got hungry customers."

Then another voice called, "Astraia! Your time's up, I'm taking over." Another boy came from somewhere.

Astraia sighed. "Oh, okay. Well, I guess I'll eat with you three."

So the new group of four got food (Astraia made a small salad out of the vegetables to go with her fries) and sat down on one of the concrete bowls surrounding a tree on the sidewalk.

"Yummy, fattening greasy food," Eumelia sighed, taking a big bite out of her burger. "Mmm! These are good, Astraia."

Astraia was just opening her mouth to say something, when she stiffened. "Hold on. Do you feel like we're being watched?"

The four feel silent with her comments, concentrating on their surroundings.

"No," Aella said, but Eumelia and Theia answered affirmatively.

There was a tense silence, and suddenly, Eumelia looked closely at Astraia, narrowing her eyes.

She ate her food quickly, the threw her trash into the nearest garbage can. "I'm going to go see a friend that's here really fast, okay?" She looked meaningfully at Aella and Theia, who looked confused, then caught her meaning.

They started talking to Astraia animatedly, while Eumelia headed around the side of the building they were in front of—the River Center—to the cargo bay. Pulling out her compact, she called for Beatrice.

The woman's face swam into view. "Oh, hello, Eumelia. What's wrong?"

"Beatrice, I think I've found a new Sailor Senshi."

The woman looked concerned. "Describe her to me."

"Okay. She's got black hair with loose curls and bangs, and she tied it up into a ponytail with a bow. Her eyes are this really, really bright green, and she's pretty tall, and kind of solidly built, but I think she's more fragile then she looks. Oh, and she's a vegetarian. And she felt like we were being watched—I could feel that too, like there's a monster nearby."

Beatrice chewed her lip. "That sounds like a Senshi, alright. Maybe Sailor Lupus. Okay, Eumelia, I'm going to give you Sailor Lupus' locket. Tell this Astraia your suspicions and explain to her what a sailor senshi is. Then ask her to try and transform. But don't forget to ask her if she even wants to be a senshi."

A locket with a symbol of an X crossed over a straight vertical line appeared. Eumelia took it, and slid it securely into her shorts pocket.

"I'll see you later, Beatrice."

* * *

Eumelia had led Astraia and the others to the cargo bay as well.

"Um, Eumelia, I don't think we should hang out around here..." Astraia said nervously, looking around.

"We need privacy. Astraia, do you know about the Sailor Soldiers?"

"Oh, you mean, Sailor Lyra and Auriga and Cygnus? Yeah, I know about them."

"Well..." Eumelia took a deep breath. "We're them."

Astraia frowned. "You're lying."

"We're not!"

"Then prove it!"

Sighing dejectedly, Eumelia motioned for the others to transform.

When they were transformed, Astraia looked at them sternly. "Okay, this is great. Yay. Now why do you want me here? What do you have to tell me?"

"I have reason to think you're one of us," Lyra said. She summoned the locket Beatrice had given her. "Here."

Astraia examined it closely while Lyra told her about being a Senshi.

"So try transforming," Aella added, helpfully. "If Beatrice thinks you're Sailor Lupus, then your transformation phrase should be..."

Astraia cut her off. "Lupus Constellation Power, Make-up!"

The light was green this time. But this time, instead of looking happy or shocked, Astraia—Sailor Lupus—just looked dejected. She wore green and light brown, and the shape of a wolf could be seen on her ankle-height green boots.

"Lupus...what's wrong?" Eumelia questioned, gently.

Sailor Lupus suddenly stamped her foot. "I don't want to be a Sailor Senshi!" she cried. "This is too much!"

But there was no time to explain. Something growled in the shadows under a semi trailer parked in the cargo bay, then a gray-furred shape lunged from that area, knocking Lupus heavily to the ground. She shrieked. "Get this off me!"

The thing was a wolf, gray and savage. It tried to rake Lupus across the face, but she rolled and threw it off her as best as she could.

The girls reacted quickly. "Cygnus Cloud Chain!" Sailor Cygnus cried, pointing her finger at the wolf. A rope formed, and wrapped around the wolf's muzzle. But the wolf opened his jaws, and snapped it.

Astraia lurched to her feet. She tried to think fast. The wolf was quicksilver, dodging the attacks and blows of her apparent comrades, landing its own scratches and bites. And yet, it didn't seem very magical, like the monsters she'd heard accounts of. What if it was a normal wolf?

_Wolves. What have I learned about them?_

_Ah. They're supposed to be more scared of humans then we are of them. So what caused this one to attack us? Can I tame it?_

She tried to think, but it turned towards her. Panicked, she yelled the first thing that popped into her mind.

"Lupus Nature Taming!"

There was a bang, which surprised the other soldiers, who had been expecting a flash of light. But then they were distracted by the wold itself.

It was sitting serenely on the concrete, wagging its tail, and look at Lupus like she was the greatest person in the world. He was panting slightly, like a dog waiting for its master to pet it, give it a treat, and say 'good dog!'

"Um..." Theia was first to speak. "Uh...good job. Hey, why don't you try petting it?"

Sailor Lupus grimaced. Gingerly, she walked forward, and laid a head on the wolf's head. It nuzzled her palm eagerly, getting slobber on her sleeve. "Ew. Well, now what? I don't think it would be right to kill it."

"You're right. Think we can call animal patrol?" Aella said.

"Good idea." Lyra was just going to de-transform, but then there was a blinding flash, a crash, and a yip.

"No!" Lupus cried, because when the light was gone, you could see the wolf, lying on its side in a pool of blood. Then, it disappeared. She had grown strangely attached to the wolf quickly, and its undeserved death made the senshi furious.

But the others were on guard. There was an unmistakable feeling of hostility. Then, they could see the outline of a person in the shadow of the cargo bay. Rain clouds were rolling over the sky. There was a crash of thunder somewhere, and rain began to fall.

"Who are you?" Theia asked, angrily.

"I...I would be your enemy." The person was a woman. She stepped forward, not so that they could see her entirely, but so they could see the outline of her outfit, too. It was uncomfortably similar to their own.

"Sailor Andromeda."


	6. Mysteries

**Chapter 5: Mysteries**

_"Bring me all of your dreams,  
You dreamer"  
_-Langston Hughes, _The Dream Keeper_

There was a flash of lighting dangerously close. The shouts of festival-goers drifted over the tops of the buildings as they scrambled to find cover.

"Sailor Andromeda?" Lyra breathed, feeling a stirring inside of her heart at the name.

"Yes. That is me." But still, the woman did not step forward so they could see her clearly.

"Then go ahead and try to defeat us!" Lupus shouted. She could feel anger building in her chest.

"_Don't_ talk to me like that, Sailor Lupus. If I recall, you didn't want to be a soldier...because it was 'too much'," the girl mocked.

"Why are you attacking us?" Lyra tried to say, but then there was a flash, and the girls cried out in pain as they fell to the ground.

The last thing the girl said was, "I'll leave you for now...maybe it'll be better if you hear about what you did in the past."

* * *

A week passed quietly. Astraia decided that she did indeed want to be a soldier. She was not going to forgive that girl, ever. Theia pulled some strings with her parents to designate a room in her house as a meeting place for the soldiers. She didn't get a room, but she did get the summer house in their garden.

And so it was that the four congregated at Theia's house on Thursday to set the place up. But it was with shock that Beatrice showed up as well. She was waiting for Eumelia, Aella, and Astraia in Theia's kitchen.

"Beatrice! What are you doing here?" Eumelia asked, distracted from marveling at the tasteful decorations in Theia's house.

"Figured I might as well meet you in person. Help out, and discuss your...little friend," Beatrice finished.

"'Little friend'?" Astraia questioned, confused at the phrasing.

"It's because my parents will freak out if they hear the word 'enemy'. They have suspicions, but don't know yet. I don't want them to."

"Oh. That's good."

The five trooped out into the backyard. The garden was pretty, and in one corner was the summer house, which was more of an oversized shed.

"We need to clean it out and set up a table and such," Theia commented, taking off the padlock. "We haven't used this in a long time, ever since my mom spruced up the dining room. We used to have little parties in here."

A sheet of windows was in the front of the dark-wooded building, along with a wooden door that also had a panel of small windows. The floor inside was also dark wood. There were no other windows. Crammed inside were garden tools and other odds and ends. The whole place was dusty, and very hot and sticky, due to an awful lot of very wet humidity.

"Wow. Um...can we get a fan out here before we start?" Aella asked, peering inside.

"It looks like you've got some electrical plugs," Astraia commented, poking around. "Right...here. I hope they work."

"I'll go get the fan from the kitchen," Beatrice said, tramping off.

Theia set down the bucket she'd been carrying. It was full of rags and cleaning supplies. "Well, let's get this cleared out. These should be in the shed, I have no idea why they're in here."

The girls started carrying out the things inside it. Soon, Beatrice appeared with a fan. She plugged it into the lone socket on the wall, and turned it off. There were a few nervous moments, but the fan sputtered to life.

"Woohoo! That means the electricity works!" Eumelia said, putting her face in front of the fan.

"Yeah, well, get back to work, you," Theia commented, hitting Eumelia with a rag.

At some point, while they were dusting, Astraia asked, "What do you all want to do when you're out of school?"

"Oh, I want to be in a famous band. I play French horn," Eumelia said, scrubbing furiously at a spot on one of windows. "This dust isn't coming off!"

"Me, I want to be a lawyer," Aella said, gingerly poking a long-handled duster at a spiderweb on the ceiling. "Law's kind of complicated to work with, but it's challenging enough."

Theia grinned. "It's dancing for me. Been doing it since I was little." She sprayed more Windex on the windows she was working on. "How about you, Astraia?"

"Me? Oh, I'm not sure. I've thought about being the CEO of a company, but I've started leaning a lot towards working as a veterinarian," Astraia responded. She dumped the contents of her dust pan into the garbage. Then she thought of something. "Hey, Beatrice, what do you do when you're not helping us? What's your job?"

"Photography," Beatrice said absentmindedly as she scrubbed the wall. She didn't seem keen on the idea of elaborating, so they went onto other subjects.

About two hours later, the summer house was sparkling clean, and they were dragging some unused lawn furniture into it. They managed to cram in a small table and four chairs around it, with a fifth in the corner. The fan was also held hostage, and a new bulb was screwed into the socket—Astraia had insisted on it being one of the compact fluorescent ones.

"Ugh! I'm so tired," Aella sighed, flopping into a chair. The others sat as well.

Theia had gone into the house to get them some food and drinks. She showed up with chips, juice boxes, and some fruit. "I come bearing sustenance," she intoned, setting the tray she carried on the table.

"Okay. Now we need to talk about this Sailor Andromeda," Eumelia said, grabbing and apple and some juice.

"Well, it's kind of obvious she's bent on killing us or something," Astraia commented, sipping her juice. "The question is, why? And she said something about 'what you did in the past'. What past? What did we do?"

"I'm not sure," Beatrice said from her chair in the corner. "Maybe she's just confused or insane. Toss me a juice, would you?"

Theia complied. "But I'm not sure about that theory. She seems very calculating. And look at how she matched each of our enemies up with our elements! For example, Eumelia is a water senshi, and she faced a water serpent. And I'm fire, with my enemy being a phoenix. Aella had the crazy wind lady, because she's air, and Astraia's an earth senshi, and she had the wolf."

"But that wolf was strange. It was like a real wolf, rather then a monster, like you three faced. And usually, wolves won't randomly attack like that," Astraia mused. "Maybe Andromeda has some sort of power over minds?"

"Possibly," Aella responded. But then she recalled something. "Hold on! The Andromeda..."

But just like earlier, she wasn't able to finish. There was a bang and a blast of smoke. The walls of the summer house shook.

And when the smoke was gone with the shock, they saw what was quite obviously Sailor Andromeda.

She did wear a similar outfit. However, the bodice was gray, and there were three transparent rings around each of her shoulders and elbows. Her skirt was pleated at the bottom and had two layers: the top orange, the bottom gray. She wore knee-length gray boots, with two crossing black stripes over them. Sailor Andromeda's hair was tinted orange, cut straight and the bottom and tied into a half-bun. Her gray eyes glinted with cold fury.

"Talking about me, are you?"

Theia was the first to react. "Auriga Constellation Power, Make-up!"

The others followed suit.

"Lyra Constellation Power, Make-up!"

"Cygnus Constellation Power, Make-up!"

"Lupus Constellation Power, Make-up!"

With all four of them transformed, Sailor Andromeda smirked. "Ah. Here you are again. Come on then...fight me. That is not what I am here for."

This caught them all off guard. "Then why are you here?" Theia asked.

"To tell you why I am here. To show you."

Andromeda started to pace back and forth, each step measured and deliberate. "Surely you know the myth of Princess Andromeda?"

"That was the one where the princess was chained to a rock to be eaten, right?" Eumelia answered. "But...she was saved by Perseus. And it was just a myth..."

She was cut off by Andromeda, who shouted "'Just a myth'? I'll show you a myth, girl. All of us are myths. None of us are real. But that doesn't stop you from existing."

The other soldier regained her composure. "All of you never helped me in the past...your past life. And yet, you have the impudence to be born again after you were killed. So when I, too, was reborn, I vowed to get revenge. You allowed me to die that day. So now, you should die. I don't care who I was before."

Sailor Andromeda started to raise her hand, but Beatrice cried something in an ancient language, that seemed to be older than time itself, and the world disappeared around them, while the senshi cried out in fear.


	7. Pasts

**Chapter 6: Pasts**

"_Past failures are guideposts to success."  
_-Unknown source

When Lyra came to, she was lying on the floor of the summer house, but something seemed different. Sitting around her were the other four. Beatrice and Andromeda were both gone.

"What just happened?" Cygnus asked, rubbing her forehead.

"I'm not sure, but something isn't right," Lupus said, standing up. She went over the door and pushed it open.

"Whoa. Okay. This is messed up."

Gathering around the tallest senshi, the others had to agree. After all, it was a little weird to see Theia's garden, only not her garden as it was so different, at night, glowing in a rainbow of colors, with her house replaced by an apparent castle. And the stars were different, too. And where was the Moon?

But before they could wonder on the subject much, they could hear a clear voice, calling "Princesses of the stars..."

A figure appeared from around a corner. She was clothed in a gown that shimmered in rainbow colors. Flaxen hair tumbled around her feet. The lady stopped in front of them. She had the posture of a queen.

"Lyra. Auriga. Cygnus. Lupus. Welcome home," the woman said, spreading her arms wide.

"Home...?" Eumelia said, softly. She could feel a stirring in her chest, a pull towards this woman.

She smiled softly. "You are on Vega, in the constellation Lyra. Granted, it isn't the home of the other three...but this was where you would often commiserate. And what better place to learn of your past then here?"

Lyra was excited at that. "Then you're going to tell us the truth?"

"Yes," the woman said. She motioned towards a table, tucked away among the trees. "It's a long story. Please, sit."

When they had done so, the queen started. "All four of you had a past life, in which you were sailor senshi—the same senshi you are now. You were also princesses of your constellations...Princesses Lyra, Auriga, Cygnus, and Lupus. But there was a fifth...the constellation Andromeda. These five constellations were joined in a treaty. All of them would protect each other."

"But things started to fall apart. The Silver Millennium, the most powerful entity in the galaxy at the time, fell, and your kingdoms did as well. All four of you perished in the destruction."

"These deaths were slow to be reported to Andromeda, who led the coalition. And by the time they did, it was too late. Princess Andromeda had died. You know the myth. It's too terrible to go into here."

The lady spoke so smoothly and calmly, you wouldn't have been able to tell she was delivering news that completely destroyed everything her audience had ever thought about their lives.

"And...who are you?" Aella asked, staring at her hands.

"That is not important. But it is time for you to realize...you must save Andromeda. She does not know why you could not help. And you have to discover your own powers, the stronger powers within you."

The woman smiled. "You will return one day...you will come into your own as queens. But as for now, it is getting late. You must return to your families."

And with that, the world around them dissolved.

* * *

The rest of the summer passed with an eerie quietness. Monster attacks were sporadic and far apart. It could be seen as a good thing, but it also made the girl apprehensive. Was Andromeda preparing for a very large attack?

They met often at the summer house, discussing the past they had learned about, and also the very strange absence of a certain little friend.

The rest of summer passed in a blaze of heat, and the junior year of high school started on August 26 for everyone but Theia, who started August 29, a fact she relished.

On her first day, Eumelia was running to science class when she ran straight into a girl who was running the opposite way. There was a yell, a clattering sound as they both dropped their books, and they fell to the ground.

"Ouch..." Eumelia hissed, rubbing her ankle. It had twisted under her as she fell.

"Oh my god, are you okay?" said the girl who'd run into her. She had orange-tinted hair, tied into half a ponytail.

"Yeah, I think I'm fine..." Eumelia said, standing. She put weight on her ankle, and grimaced. "That's gonna bruise. I'm sorry I ran into you," she continued, looking at the girl. She had the beginning of a thought flit into her mind before it was gone.

"I'm Aegle Chrysanthe," said the girl, extending a hand.

"Eumelia Ianthe. Oh, we have similar names!"

Aegle giggled. "Yeah. Hey, do you know the way to Darland's Physics class?"

"Oh, you have Mr. Darland for Physics now? I do too. He's this way."

Eumelia led Aegle to the class, and they ran inside just as the bell rang.

"I don't think you can call that 'saved by the bell', Eumelia whispered as she sat at one of the black tables. Aegle took the seat next to her.

"Yeah," Aegle whispered back. She took the two syllabus packets that were handed to her, and gave one to Eumelia.

The two whispered amiably throughout the rest of their class. And it was no surprise that, by the end of August, they were good friends, and they shared two of the same classes—Physics, and Algebra 2.

In early September, Eumelia was standing outside the lunchroom with Aegle, chatting as they waited for the bell, when a handsome guy with tousled black hair walked past. Aegle stopped mid-sentence, and stared as he strolled past.

"...Aegle? Woohoo, Earth to Aegle?" Eumelia said, waving a hand in front of her friend's face.

She jumped out of her reverie, startled. "Oh, I'm sorry. I was just watching that guy. Who is he?"

"Him? Oh, that's Perseus...I don't remember his last name, actually. Anyways, I had him in my Geometry class last year. He's a nice guy if you get to know him, but pretty untouchable otherwise."

* * *

It was the beginning of October when things fell apart.

One chilly Monday morning, Eumelia was buzzing into the mouthpiece of her mellophone as she headed out to the field for marching band practice. The buzzing helped warm up the instrument, which was always good. She was also going over the various assignments she'd been given last week, wondering if she'd gotten them all done, or if she would be stuck turning them in late again.

It was with some shock when she felt someone walk right into her side. She dropped her mellophone from the impact. She grabbed it and straightened up, expecting a sorry, but not hearing one.

It was with even more shock that Eumelia saw Aegle walking away, smirking.

"Hey!" Eumelia shouted, running over. "What's the matter? Why did you walk into me?"

Aegle stopped walking. "Don't you realize? Don't you realize who I am, Eumelia?" she said, her voice deadly soft.

Then, all of a sudden, it rushed into Eumelia's mind. "You...you're Sailor Andromeda!"

"Straight on," Aegle responded, voice still low.

Then, quick as a viper, she turned around struck Eumelia across the face.

"You deserved that, you know. You don't understand me. And that woman...she has no idea, at all, of what I wish."

Aegle stood over Eumelia, her breath quick. "It's time to stop playing, Sailor Lyra. The real battle starts now."

Eumelia shot to her feet. "Okay then. Lyra Constellation Power, Make-up!"

But Andromeda was too quick. She transformed as well.

"Andromeda Chained Power, Make-up!"

It was like two opposite powers grating on each other. Eumelia had never experienced pain while transforming, but she did now. So as soon as she could, Lyra darted off, running down the driveway around the back of the school, while the other few people outside pointed and stared, and the band director reached for his cellphone.

_I have to lose her,_ Lyra thought as she ran. Looking back over her shoulder, she saw Andromeda gaining on her, but she also saw that the door to the shop backstage was open. It was a perfect opportunity. If the prop cage was open too, then she could hide easily. Lyra knew the place like the back of her hand.

Spinning around, Lyra ran as fast as she could. Andromeda was surprised by the move, but she recovered quickly.

_Faster. Faster. Gotta call the others..._

Lyra summoned her locket and called for Aella.

"Aella! It's Andromeda, she's attacking me! Get the others over here!" Lyra shouted at her friend, who nodded.

Lyra dodged into the shop. It was dark—obviously, someone had neglected to close the door after musical set construction the night before—so it was harder to get around.

Nearly tripping over a plank of wood on the ground, Lyra could see that the door to the prop cage (more like room) was open. She scurried up the stairs to the second level and hid behind a hanging dust cloth, listening to Andromeda curse as she tried to find her way around in the dark.

But just then, Lyra heard the voices of her friends shouting their attacks below. There was a scream, a terrible silence.

However, when Lyra looked around the edge of the curtain, she only saw Cygnus, Auriga, and Lupus, looking horribly confused.

"She just disappeared," Auriga finally said.


	8. Power

**Chapter 7: Power**

_"The gleam of an heroic act,  
Such strange illumination—  
The Possible's slow fuse is lit  
By the Imagination!"  
_-Emily Dickinson

On Friday, the sky was bruised and ugly, ready for rain. Eumelia sat looking out of her bedroom window after school. In the distance, she could see the tower of the storm siren rising over the buildings, an admonitory finger against the sky.

_How could I have trusted her...I should have known..._Eumelia thought miserably.

She couldn't believe the betrayal. Or how she could have just disappeared like that.

* * *

The next Monday, Eumelia was sitting at her desk in English. Aegle had stopped coming to school. No one seemed to remember her.

Tapping her pencil distractedly on her textbook, Eumelia glanced at the narrow window in the door...

...and saw Aegle looking at her, purposefully. Then, with a jerk of her head, she walked away.

"Ms. Ogden? Can I go to the bathroom?" Eumelia asked quickly.

Obtaining her hallway pass, Eumelia scooted out the door as fast as possible. She transformed in the bathroom, then ran down the hallway and around the corner.

She was Aegle opening the door to the gym lobby. The hall was otherwise empty, but Lyra hoped that she wouldn't attract the attention of the people in the library, which had clear glass windows facing out into the hallway.

But she couldn't dilly-dally around. Lyra quietly called the others, informing them of the situation. Aella was in German at that moment, so she promised to be out soon.

Taking a deep breath, Lyra ran down the hallway and into the gym lobby. There, she found Aegle, transformed and ready.

"I trust you've called the others. That's good. Then...I suppose we shall fight now."

But Lyra had other questions. "Why have you been holding back, Andromeda? You don't really want to fight us, do you?"

That had been the wrong thing to say.

Andromeda snarled, angrily. "Andromeda Chain Whip!"

A chain appeared out of nowhere. Sailor Andromeda did indeed wield it like a whip, swinging it back and then forward to strike Lyra across the legs.

Lyra fell to the ground, as the door to the lobby opened. Aella stood there. For the first time, she looked angry.

"You're going to use a chain too, then? Cygnus Cloud Chain!"

The two ropes met in midair, but Andromeda's easily snapped Cygnus'. She then hit Cygnus in the chest, sending her flying into the wall.

"Lyra Foaming Wave!" Lyra retaliated, but just as with Cygnus' attack, it was sent back. Only this time, Lyra was wiser, and she dived to the side.

The door that led outside opened. Lupus and Auriga had arrived.

"Auriga Flame Ray!"

"Lupus Nature Taming!"

Lupus' attack would take some time to work—she was holding back the forces of nature, letting them build up, so could unleash them on Andromeda. However, Auriga's attack landed a glancing blow on their enemy's shoulder.

The battle continued in much the same manner. Lyra seemed to be watching distantly as she went through the motions, feeling the pain. _This is a losing battle..._

But then something seemed to come up from the depths. The woman in the garden, saying,_ You have to discover your own powers, the stronger powers within you._

_The stronger powers within you._

_Who am _I? Lyra thought, as she crashed to the ground again.

A voice seemed to answer:_ Lyra, soldier of Music._

_The constellation Lyra represents..._

_A lyre._

Sailor Lyra didn't know this, but the near-same string of thought was going through the other's heads.

_Sailor Auriga...Soldier of the Dawn...a chariot..._

_Sailor Cygnus...Soldier of the Sky...a swan..._

_Sailor Lupus...Soldier of the Wilds...a wolf..._

And, in a brilliant flash of light, a new power was born.

A silver lyre studded with purple stones appeared in the air before Lyra. She seized it, as did the others.

Auriga's new item was a silver amulet accented with rubies. Cygnus had a silver folding fan with pale blue stones. And Lupus had a silver bow and arrow.

They were weapons.

Raising her lyre, Lyra concentrated on the light of the stars, the sound of the waves, and gentle music.

"Lyra Star Song!"

As she held out her amulet, Auriga thought of the Sun in the dawn, its warmth in the sky, the myth of a chariot pulling that sun.

"Auriga Dawn Beam!"

Cygnus remembered the caressing winds, white-plumed feathers, and birdsong in the spring as she spread her fan.

"Cygnus Feather Swirl!"

Taking her bow, Astraia recalled lonely howls on the night, light shafted in the woods, and the fury of nature in a storm.

"Lupus Wolf Fury!"

Their attacks converged on Andromeda at once, who was caught off guard. When the lobby cleared, Andromeda was on her knees, panting. But before anyone could do anything about it, she choked out, "It's ending tonight," and disappeared.

Before the four could say anymore, the door to the gym opened, and a male voice said, "Coach Fox, I don't think...oh, wait, it's the Sailor girls!"

The black-haired boy, Perseus, wearing his gym clothes, was standing in the doorway. Behind him were clustered a few other gym students.

"Oh, joy," Theia muttered. She raised her voice. "Yes, yes, it's the Sailor girls, we're having issues right now, so we'll be leaving, thank you very much."

But Eumelia remembered something important. "You, Perseus, could you come with me? I need to talk with you." She ignored the shocked whispers of the others.

Perseus looked confused, but he detached himself and walked after Lyra as they filed out the door. Meanwhile, Coach Fox, looking after them, didn't know what he should do. He called the rest of his class back into the gym and went to the locker room to pick up the phone and call the main office.

The senshi and Perseus were led by Lyra to her car. "Get in," she ordered, "And Aella, get your car too. We need to talk."

"But, our school stuff..." Cygnus stammered.

"We'll get them tomorrow. This is much more important."

Lyra slid into the driver's seat. Auriga clambered into the passenger seat, and Lupus with Perseus sat in the back. They waited patiently for Aella to come driving around the side of the school, then she pulled out of the school's parking lot, and starting heading east, towards Bettendorf.

She didn't stop driving, or talking, until she reached Theia's house. Still silent, she led them to the summer house.

There, the four de-transformed, and introduced themselves to Perseus, who looked even more shocked.

"Now, Eumelia, what was it you wanted to talk about?" Astraia asked, but Eumelia was fiddling with her compact.

"I'm calling Beatrice," she said, and murmured the Guide's name into the mirror.

Breathless moments passed. Then, Beatrice's face swam into focus.

"Eumelia? What do you want?"

Eumelia didn't waste time, however. "Beatrice. I need to know something. What does the constellation Andromeda represent?"

Beatrice hesitated, then spoke. "A chained maiden."

"And what was the myth?" The others were silent, waiting for answers.

"The myth of Andromeda...oh, Eumelia." Beatrice cleared her throat.

"Andromeda was the princess of Ethiopia, not the country that exists right now, mind you. Her mother boasted that she was more beautiful than the Nereids, which you might know as Poseidon's daughters. And Poseidon became very angry, and he sent a monster to destroy their kingdom. And Poseidon wouldn't be appeased unless the king and queen sacrificed Andromeda to be eaten by the monster."

"So they chained the princess to a rock by the sea. But just as the monster was going to eat her, a man named Perseus arrived, showing the monster the head of Medusa. Seeing the head turned the monster to stone, and Perseus saved Andromeda."

Eumelia furrowed her brow. So this...she turned around to face Perseus, who had been silent the whole time.

"Beatrice, I think...I think the Andromeda we know may not have been saved. And I think that this Perseus is her Perseus."

Said Perseus started. "What? But...there's no way I can be involved in this."

Theia looked at him in a new light. "Oh, but I think you are. Believe me, not a single one of us four hasn't thought we shouldn't be a part of this, that we must be confused with other, better people."

Pulling them back on track, then, Beatrice said, "Eumelia. Tell me now. Did Andromeda challenge you tonight?"

"Yes...she said it would end tonight..."

"Then we have to fight her. And Perseus must come. Tell him everything."

"But why?" Astraia asked, confused as to why they would drag him to their battle.

"Just tell him. And I mean everything." Beatrice disappeared.

Having been left staring into an empty mirror, Eumelia slowly closed the compact, and turned to face Perseus.

"Okay. So it started with me on a Monday..."

* * *

Sailor Andromeda, de-transformed, stared into the mirror disconsolately. On the dresser in front of her was a large jar candle, scented like apple pie. Its glow was the only light in the room. She had drawn the heavy curtains, shutting out the lights of Interstate 80 and the city, leaving her alone with her thoughts.

Aegle had been living in this hotel room for quite some time. It was the only place she could be, and still, she didn't belong.

A sigh escaped the girl's lungs. "Perseus..."

She wanted to be with him so badly. But she couldn't. Andromeda, much-beloved of her kingdom, had been cheated of everything she had wanted. Because of them...

It was time to fight.

Aegle stood, gazing at the candle. "Out, out-"

And the light disappeared.


	9. Battle

**Chapter 8: Battle**

_"Days that cannot bring you near  
or will not,  
Distance trying to appear  
something more obstinate,  
argue argue argue with me  
endlessly  
neither proving you less wanted nor less dear."  
_-Elizabeth Bishop, _Argument_

The air was silent and waiting, waiting for the scene that was going to unfold. In the distance were the lights of the Stone Fountain. No one was taking a walk in the park at this time, and Beatrice had put a shield around the area that would prevent them from being seen or heard.

Lyra and the others were standing nervously in a stand of trees, where they had been directed to go by Beatrice. Perseus was standing back, in the shadows, so hopelessly confused and worried.

"I don't understand why this has to happen," Lyra commented, softly. The others agreed.

This dreadful waiting was tearing them all up, waiting to see the face of their enemy.

Then there was a rustling noise, and a figure stepped out into their sight.

Sailor Andromeda.

She wasted no time with words,launching straight into the attack. "Andromeda Chain Whip!"

The heavy links of her chain whipped through the air in a high arc. Auriga dodged quickly out of their way, but the chain wrapped itself around Astraia's legs before she had a chance to react. She was pulled down into the ground, the chain cutting into her legs. She scrabbled at it, trying to push it off, feeling as though her legs were going to be snapped off.

Auriga pointed her finger towards Andromeda. "Auriga Flame Ray!"

Quickly, Andromeda moved the chain off of Lupus' legs to defend herself from the flames that rushed her way. When the attack had faded, Andromeda moved quickly to attack Cygnus, who quickly defended herself by wrapping her own chain around Andromeda's.

The two chains knotted together, Lyra attacked as well. The water was not something Andromeda had expected in her tug-of-war with Cygnus, and for once, they saw her stumble back, her weapon slithering out of her grasp.

Lupus took her own chance with this opening. "Lupus Nature Taming!" she cried, willing the branches of the trees to grow, to wrap around Andromeda. And they did. The branches extended themselves rapidly, twining around the enemy, who struggled in their grip.

"Auriga Flame Ray!" Theia called out, but Andromeda was able to regain her senses and break the branches, dropping down flat to the ground just in time so that the fire only scorched the edge of her arm.

But still, they had hurt her. Andromeda clutched the arm to her side, hissing through her teeth as she rubbed it. She looked upon the other senshi, hate glowing in her eyes as she brought her chain to bear again.

"Andromeda Shackle Binding!" she cried, whipping the chain at Lyra.

Lyra didn't even realize what was happening before it was too late. Her arms seemed to grow heavy, as thought something unseen had wrapped around them. Her legs felt the same way too. It was as though Sailor Lyra was being pulled down, sinking into the ground to be lost forever.

She cried out, struggled, but nothing stopped the attack's swift advance on her. The air around Lyra shimmered, and a pair of heavy iron shackles appeared around her ankles. She could feel another pair binding her arms behind her, and it was their weight that was dragging her down.

Startled, Lyra tried to moved, but fell heavily to earth. Thinking wildly, Lyra decided to try and attack. "Lyra Foaming Wave!"

It was here that Sailor Lyra learned how important it was for her to have her arms free to move.

Without Lyra's arm to guide and direct the energy, the wave went everywhere, splashing into everyone except Andromeda, who calmly deflected it away from her and towards Auriga. Faced with a double onset of water, the senshi fell heavily to the ground in pain.

Sailor Auriga rolled away, and staggered to her feet. Lupus was taking the offensive again, this time asking the birds to lunge at Andromeda, who struggled to keep the small creatures away. Cygnus had taken advantage of the enemy's distraction and was now kneeling next to Lyra, trying to break the shackles. But to no avail—nothing she tried could destroy the bindings.

There was a sudden cry from Lupus. Andromeda had used her chain to knock all of the birds out of the air, the force of the heavy chain subsequently killing them. Then she had used the same attack she had used on Lyra to also bind Lupus, who managed to stave off the attack for a little while longer, but was soon in the same position as her comrade.

Auriga snarled. It was time to use stronger attacks.

She summoned her amulet easily, and held it up. "Auriga Dawn Beam!" The girl directed it straight at her enemy, anger burning hot in her chest. The narrow ray of flame hit Andromeda directly from behind, who was in another tug-of-war with Sailor Cygnus, who had a deadly focus on where their chains were knotted together, determined not to lose.

Sailor Andromeda cried out. She tugged her weapon viciously, whipping it towards Auriga. "Andromeda Shac-"

She was cut off. Lupus had thrown her weight into Andromeda. Even thought she was bound, the other girl had a larger frame and was much taller than the other. The two senshi went down heavily, shrieking unintelligibly at each other. Lyra cheered from where she sat.

Cygnus moved her own chain sharply through the air, striking Andromeda with it before pulling it back and letting it dissipate into vapor. She then summoned her fan. Spreading it wide, she angled it and moved it easily through the air, crying out, "Cygnus Feather Swirl!"

A cloud of feathers swirled loosely in the air, then thickened around Andromeda, who had been fighting with Lupus hand-and-fist, her chain lying forgotten on the ground. Lupus rolled away quickly, leaving Andromeda caught in the attack.

Auriga lunged forward and grabbed Andromeda's chain. It burned her hands, growing hotter by the moment, but she forced herself to bear it as she swung it towards Lyra, praying grimly that she could do this right.

The arc of the chain ended and wrapped neatly around the smaller chains linking the shackles around Lyra's arms to each other. Auriga's nerves were screaming at her now, the pain was white-hot to the point that she almost couldn't feel it anymore, but she willed herself to tug.

There was a loud snapping noise. Auriga dropped the chain immediately, gasping in pain. But she had done it—Lyra was free. Then she swiftly did the same to Lupus.

"Thank you so much!" Lyra cried. She waste no time, quickly summoning her lyre as Auriga hung back, nursing the hands that had experience heat so hot it had scorched away the fabric of the sleeves encasing her hands and burned the skin a shiny red.

Cygnus had been engaging in a physical battle with Andromeda, using her fan to hit the other. The sharp edge of the stiff paper had caught Andromeda on the cheek and now there was a cut there, the blood bright against her deathly pale skin. Lupus was still out of commission, not wanting to risk trying her attack even if hers was controlled solely by the mind.

Quickly, Lyra brought her weapon to bear. "Lyra Star Song!" The ribbons of delicate water sparkling with flecks of silver twined gently in the air, then wrapped around Andromeda, who, startled, stumbled backwards. Cygnus raised her fan again, another swirl of feathers flying through the night.

However, Andromeda was prepared this time. She sprang to the side, then grabbed her chain before anyone could stop her. She swung it up and down, hitting Cygnus on the shoulder, who fell back, then twisting around sharply to strike Lyra across the stomach.

Having also been freed, Lupus was quick to join the fray. She summoned her bow and stood back into an archery position, drawing her arrow back and pulling Andromeda into sight. She let it fly straight with a cry of "Lupus Wolf Fury!"

The arrow and the green light left in its wake struck Andromeda in the side, who reeled away from the onslaught of the others.

It seemed that the tide of the battle was turning, that they were now winning against Andromeda, but the orange-haired soldier had more tricks up her sleeve.

Bringing her chain to bear again, Andromeda started to slowly swing it in circles above her head. An eerie green light followed in its wake, and the other watched it apprehensively, frozen by this strange move.

The mistake proved deadly.

All together, the four girls shrieked in pain, because they felt as though they were being attacked from all sides. They dropped their weapons, which disappeared, not being able to hold onto this world without the touch of their commanders. They were being bound again, but not with shackles, this time with a deadly force they couldn't name.

Incapacitated, unable to move, they were left at the mercy of their greatest enemy.

But she seemed to want to toy with them for a bit. She paced back and forth in front of them, a predator, regal and calm but the smile twisted.

"Do you know what it was like for me to be chained to a rock waiting to be eaten?" she whispered softly, kneeling down. She grabbed Cygnus' chin and jerked the girl's face close to her own. "Do you? For the sake of my mother's boast?"

She spat. "Of course not."

Standing up again, Sailor Andromeda continued her restless pacing. "And the whole time thinking that my loyal friends, my four lovely friends, would come to help me."

"But they never did." This time she knelt to face Lupus, who looked at her evenly.

"It is all your fault that I died. I died hating you." She kicked Lupus roughly before sweeping away again.

"I was reborn, knowing everything that had happened, in a cold, empty kingdom. My beautiful kingdom had fallen into ruin. I wandered there for what seemed like years, naked and in despair, cursing all of you." She turned to face Lyra, who bowed her head in despair. How could this be their fault?

"Then Fortune smiled. Because I had learned that you were reborn here on this planet. And so...I vowed revenge for your betrayal. And now I have you."

Andromeda smiled wickedly, bringing her chain up for the killing blow.

But then there was a blinding flash of light, and a figure appeared in front of the girls just as a male voice shouted "No!"

Andromeda stared in shock.

"You!"


	10. Return

**Chapter 9: Return**

_"Light laughs the breeze in her castle of sunshine;  
Babbles the bee in a stolid ear;  
Pipe the sweet birds in an ignorant cadence,—  
Ah, what sweet sagacity perished here!"  
_-Emily Dickinson

Beatrice stared at Andromeda, eyes narrowed. She didn't seem to have anything else different about her...but a different way of carrying herself, a certain power that required no words, no weapons, no direction. Just pure, raw power.

Andromeda hissed. "The Guide." She brought her chain up.

A warm feeling spread through the four senshi, curing their pain and freeing them. Beatrice gestured them to move back, whispering "Protect Perseus. Don't let her see him," to Auriga. In accordance, the four surrounded their spectator protectively, who had been the one to cry out.

Beatrice faced Andromeda steadily. "You aren't going to win here today."

There was no hesitation. The two began moving, quicker than seemed believable, attacking each other wordlessly, flashes of light flickering across the scene. This battle was much, much more intense than any that Lyra, Auriga, Cygnus, or Lupus had fought.

Perseus spoke softly from behind them. "What's going to happen?"

"I don't know,"Lupus responded. "Just stay quiet. You're not supposed to be seen."

The Guide was overpowering Andromeda. Beatrice guided her back with a beam of light.

But she was guiding Andromeda towards where they were standing.

"Beatrice! No!" Auriga cried, but the woman didn't seem to hear.

Andromeda tripped over her own feet and fell back, knocking right into the group.

And the first person her eyes fell upon was—

Perseus.

She gasped, eyes growing wide and her mouth working like a fish's as Perseus stared down at her in equal shock. Then, he whispered, "I know you from somewhere..."

The senshi pushed herself up, so confused and flustered. "Perseus..."

Beatrice watched, silently, along with the others, as the enemy who had once been vicious reached out, pleadingly, for the man in front of her.

"Perseus...it's me...Andromeda..."

Then something broke in her. She scrambled to her feet, and shrieked. "You brought him here to trick me!" she screamed, whirling around to face them wildly. "You knew he was my weakness, you woman!"

In a blur, Andromeda launched herself at Beatrice, screaming inhumanly as Perseus stepped backwards.

"I know her," he whispered in shock. "I know her."

Beatrice forced Andromeda off of her. "Andromeda!" she cried, voice cracking through the air like a whip.

Again, the senshi's mood changed. She turned to face Perseus again. "Perseus, please, save me...let me be with you..." she pleaded again, reaching out.

Lyra could see now that Andromeda was confused, torn between her love and defeating her enemy. Sympathy stirred in her heart. But she had to remember what Beatrice had said. _Do not let her defeat you, at all costs._

Perseus shook his head, still moving back. "How can I...?"

"Girls! Focus your power on Andromeda!" Beatrice cried. Lyra took that and ran with it, focusing on Andromeda, who was now lashing out angrily again.

The other did the same too. A warmth began to rise from the ground, also coming in from the sides and dropping down from the sky. A pale light began to shimmer in the air. They could feel their own power being augmented by Beatrice's.

They were freeing her.

Andromeda staggered back, trying to fight them off while Perseus continued to stare at her. But all of the girl's thrashing was to no avail. In this state, she couldn't win.

So instead, she surrendered.

A pain wracked her body and Andromeda screamed, feeling as though something was being torn away from her.

Then, the scene splintered to pieces and fell away.

The form of Sailor Andromeda crashed to the ground.

* * *

She was buoyed by a light feeling, a voice speaking softly.

"My beautiful girl..."

She reached out blindly. "Girl?"

"Andromeda...I'm so sorry..."

_Andromeda._ That was her name.

She could feel something that felt warm and firm against her back, and Andromeda craned into it, snuggling into the space. It felt good, as though someone was hugging her tightly, refusing to ever let go.

"Who are you..."

"Shush. Not now. Just stay quiet here with me...please..."

Memories flared bright as fireworks behind Andromeda's eyes at the voice, stirring them like charred paper after a fire.

* * *

The scene melted away, into something new. Andromeda was now lying on cold, unforgiving stone, slick with rain.

Opening her eyes, Andromeda stood. She surveyed herself, first—her clothes were different. No longer was she in her senshi outfit. Instead, Andromeda wore what she recognized as the gown she'd worn as a princess: It was long, flowing, and orange, with a scooped bodice and gathered skirt. Two of the three straps hung loosely on her arms. On her feet were strappy sandals and a necklace hung around her neck, small earrings sparkling.

Now for the scenery.

The princess stood in the remains of what must have been a bright kingdom at some point. Now, it was simply in ruin, ghosts wandering the streets. The buildings were fallen and collapsed, glass shattered. Andromeda didn't see and bodies or bones, but she didn't want to think of the horrors that might lurk in the shadows. A light drizzle was falling.

Andromeda didn't recognize this place. But she felts as though she should, eyes sliding over the grayed and peeling gold enamel of what had once been a roof.

Part of her didn't want to remember.

Moving silently along the ruined streets, Andromeda looked around warily. _Why am I here?_

Andromeda paused to look in a building, then noticed that something was seeping away from where she stood, a strange, colored light. A warmth rose, and a breeze blew as the light bled into the room, filling it with color, relieving it of the grayness. Things righted themselves, the building seemed to be repaired...

With a shock, Andromeda found herself staring at...herself. But younger. In a past life.

This Andromeda was sitting at a rich banquet table, surrounded by laughing figures. She recognized them, even—there was Lyra, Auriga, Lupus and Cygnus. There, also, was Perseus, and...her mother and father.

Perseus leaned over to whisper something in Andromeda's ear, who blushed and smiled, and whispered something in return.

The real Andromeda could feel herself longing to be with this bright throng, this happy group.

She knew where she was now, too.

She was in her old kingdom on Alpheratz. _Why didn't I recognize it before?_

Then Perseus looked up, looked directly at the real Andromeda. He excused himself and walked towards her. Andromeda took a step back, her heart thumping wildly in her chest.

He stood before her, real and solid. Then, he spoke. "Andromeda. It's time you know exactly what happened."

"What happened about what?"

"Why you weren't saved."

Andromeda's breath was sharp. So she would finally get an explanation? Her breath rose in a ghostly way before her in the chill of the air as she waited for Perseus to speak.

"When we were living here, there was a monster that was terrorizing people, turning them to stone. And I decided to go kill it. I promised I would be back soon, because we were going to be married. Do you remember?"

"Yes," Andromeda breathed, closing her eyes. Her memory was piecing itself together.

"Unfortunately...I was killed. News of my death did not arrive, because the galaxy was beginning to fall apart. And then, of course, came your mother's boast. And you know what happened there..." Perseus paused. "And I know you wanted your friends to help you, but they couldn't, they would have but they weren't alive either."

Andromeda stared at him. "What happened to them?"

Perseus took a deep breath. "Lyra and Cygnus disappeared when they went to Earth. We...we think that a certain Queen Beryl had something to do with that. You know about the Silver Millennium, right?" Andromeda nodded, and he continued. "Good. And Auriga was killed when a noble of the court poisoned her drink. And Lupus and her kingdom fell victim to famine. All around the same time." He shook his head. "Isn't that ridiculous? How whole kingdoms fell within a matter of days?"

However, Andromeda could summon no reply. She felt miserable.

_They wanted to help me. But they had no choice._

"I'm such a horrible person," she said, breaking out into a sob. "I was cruel to them, I wanted them to die, but they just couldn't come."

In response, Perseus simply folded his arms around her. Held in his embrace, Andromeda swore to herself that she would never be like she had been again.

Then, the kingdom faded away.


	11. Damage

**Chapter 10: Damage**

_"How often already you've had to be told.  
Keep cold, young orchard. Good-bye and keep cold.  
Dread fifty above more than fifty below."  
_-Robert Frost, _Good-bye and Keep Cold_

The scene was quiet. Lyra feared Andromeda dead. They weren't supposed to kill her...

_Sometimes, you show mercy. _Beatrice's words echoed in her mind.

Then, Lupus gasped. "She's moving!"

Andromeda awoke quickly, not slowly. She pushed herself to her feet. She looked at them quietly.

"I'm so sorry."

Everyone was silent. Andromeda bowed her head. "I cannot express it...how sorry I am...so utterly sorry..."

An orange light gathered around Andromeda, and she seemed to fall into it.

The others gasped, because her uniform was changing, molding to be like theirs. And when the light was gone, she was clearly one of theirs, in orange and green. The only thing marking her different was the style of her brooch—bars crossed it, separated into the colors of the others—there was a purple bar, a blue one, a red one, and a green one.

Sailor Andromeda stared at them, despondent. "I'm healed. I understand now what happened...that Perseus had died. And that you had, too. And I'm so sorry." Her voice fell to a whisper. "So sorry." She looked up again, tears bright against the green of her eyes. "Can you forgive me? Can you accept me?"

Lyra stepped forward. "Of course we forgive you."

But Auriga cut in sharply. "No. We don't."

"How can we trust you?" Lupus asked, moving in front of Lyra, who stared in horror.

"Guys!"

Cygnus spoke up. "It's true, Lyra."

"How...how can you just..? We saved her. She's okay. She's one of us," Lyra pleaded, but the others were unconvinced, restraining her.

Andromeda, Beatrice, and Perseus were silent.

"We want nothing to do with you," Auriga said. "Stay away from us."

Andromeda was feeling an immense sorrow, but she could understand.

"So be it."

She inclined her head, and turned, leaving them behind.

As soon as her form had melted into the cover of the trees, Lyra turned on the others.

"How could you! You know she was safe. You know she was."

"Eumelia, _stop it,_" Cygnus demanded. "It's too late now. And we did what we think is best. You'll see. It'll be alright." She de-transformed, and the others followed suit, Lyra the last, lingering slightly, staring at the spot she'd last seen Andromeda.

_This isn't right. It can't be._

But it was time to pick up the damage.

* * *

A few leaves swirled forlornly across the street. The sky was overcast with rainclouds; a common sight during an Iowa autumn. A slight drizzly chill hung in the air.

Eumelia couldn't concentrate. She was fully aware of the fact that this was her last year of high school and that she needed to work hard, but how does one concentrate on the structure of a sentence in French when you've just helped repair ancient celestial history? With magic, at that.

But something else was bothering Eumelia, and it wasn't boredom at returning to a normal life. Something was wrong.

Eumelia clenched her fists as she remembered the look on Andromeda's face. A devastated look, but one that understood, too. Understood why the others would keep Eumelia away, and stay away themselves.

Because Andromeda couldn't be trusted, even if she had been freed.

Even so, Eumelia had been expecting the princess to return to school. But she was not there, and still no on at North remembered the orange-haired girl.

She had been erased from their memories.

* * *

The park was empty, and so, too, was the library, when Eumelia convinced the others that they should look for Aegle. There was no one at the grocery store near Aella's home, and no one at the YMCA downtown.

The summer house at Theia's home, abandoned for a very long time, was empty as well. Except for a note.

Eumelia picked it up. She read it, and tears pricked at her eyes, but she refused to let them fall.

"She's gone."

Then, finally, she let the sob break.

"I wanted to save her."


	12. Finale

**Finale**

"_Nay, not without a wound in the spirit shall I leave this city...Too many fragments of the spirit have I scattered in these streets, and too many are the children of my longing that walk naked among these hills..."  
_-Khalil Gibran, _The Prophet_

The Sun was setting, but the Moon was rising. Her constellation was high in the sky, and she couldn't help but smile at it, despite the history it contained. Chained are those stars, but the princess is no longer.

But despite this, she was bitter and unhappy. She could understand why she was shunned, she understood it perfectly, but it hurt.

She was going to leave, and not return. She was not wanted here, and the memories of this place hurt. She will instead become who She was meant to be, and wander the world, and guard it while she could.

She sighed, and clutched her plane ticket tightly.

_This is no one's fault._


End file.
